The legacy of Sleeping Beauty is still being felt to this day.
It’s been more than 60 years since its theatrical release and since then the film has gone on to become an indisputable Disney classic .
In order to help celebrate one of the most beloved fairy tales in the history of animation, here are 10+ mistakes fans didn’t notice in Sleeping Beauty .
*Sleeping Beauty* is a classic Disney film.
It tells the beautiful story of true love, magic, and how true goodness prevails over evil.
It’s one of the best Disney movies of all time (okay, maybe that’s just my personal preference slipping in).
However, just because we all love to watch it over and over again, that doesn’t mean that it’s a perfect movie (is any, really?).
The movie is full of animation mistakes and continuity errors.
And we are here to point them out to you. Let’s get into it!
1. Flora’s eye color keeps changing throughout the film.
Clearly Floria is just so magical that even her eyes have a mind of their own!
At numerous points throughout the movie, they change from green to brown, and back to green again.
2. Wasn’t the door locked?
After a failed attempt to prepare for Rose’s birthday without the use of magic, Merryweather fetches their wands and locks the door so as not to be seen using magic.
But when Rose returns from her walk in the woods, she simply turns the knob and walks right in!
3. Fireworks weren’t invented yet.
At various points throughout Sleeping Beauty , both Prince Phillip and King Hubert call attention to the fact that the film takes place in the 14th century.
If that’s true, then there definitely wouldn’t be any fireworks displays going on.
There’s absolutely no record of fireworks being used for entertainment in Europe until the 16th century.
Are you kidding me? That’s almost a full two hundred years after the film takes place!
While it’s admittedly a nice touch for aesthetic reasons, it’s historically inaccurate.
4. The fairies shouldn’t be drinking tea.
Once more, if we are to trust Prince Phillip and King Hubert, then the story takes place in the 14th century .
However, tea wasn’t always around. In fact, it wasn’t imported to Europe from China until the 16th century.
5. Where did those rubies come from?
In the beginning, the crown from the Fairy Godmothers that was given to Aurora has no jewels at all. But when they discover her next to Maleficent, the tiara now has four giant red rubies.
Where did they come from? They disappear again later on, too!
6. Phillip is cutting in the wrong direction.
In order to advance through the thorny brush, Phillip violently waves his sword from side to side. After a few mighty chops, he clears a path forward.
But how does that work? Simply cutting left and right wouldn’t clear a path forward at all?
7. What happened to the swordfish?
After an argument that ensues between King Hubert and King Stefan, the manic monarch humorously sheathes the giant fish in his belt.
A moment later when the scene cuts, it magically disappears without a trace.
8. Waltzing around the room.
This is the last time I’ll fault the film for stepping outside the timeline. The final dance between Aurora and Prince Phillip is clearly the Waltz.
Any student of dance or history will tell you that the Waltz wasn’t actually invented until roughly the 18th century .
9. Can the fairies not count?
Aurora’s sixteenth birthday is kind of a big deal to the plot of the story.
In fact, the entire plotline revolves around the fact that when she turns 16, she will go into her deep sleep.
You would think since they’d been planning literally from the moment she was born, that they’d know how many candles to put on her birthday cake!
But evidently that isn’t the case. There are only fourteen in total.
10. How did that bird change color?
Right after Aurora finishes singing “I Wonder” she sits down by the lake. If you watch carefully, the green bird from the previous shot all of a sudden becomes yellow.
How did that happen? Camouflage maybe?
11. Aurora’s eyes seem to change color.
If you watch while Aurora is singing “Once Upon A Dream,” her eyes are black as coal.
But at the end of the film, when the prince kisses her and the spell is finally broken, her eyes are an electric blue.
12. The King’s announcement is all wrong.
When Prince Phillip and King Hubert are announced, the crier refers to them as “Their royal highnesses.” This would be just fine for a prince, but not a king .
Hubert would still have been introduced as “Your Majesty.”
13. Who opened up the drapes?
Before the fairies leave Rose alone in her tower bed chamber, Flora makes sure to close the drapes so as to not disturb her.
Yet when we see views of the tower later on, the drapes are open. So who went ahead and did that?
14. The magic bottle of bubbly.
As Stefan pours from the bottle, the bard drinks drunkenly from under the table. Stefan is never shown putting the bottle down.
Yet after the cut scene, the bottle is not only no longer in his hand but it’s somehow moved back to the center of the table?
15. Spindles aren’t actually sharp.
Maleficent says that Aurora will prick her finger on a spindle, and it is that that will send her into her deep sleep.
But spindles aren’t actually sharp. Aurora pricks her finger on the distaff.
16. The frame freeze.
While the fairies are cleaning the cottage, Merryweather has the broom sweep all the dust on the floor into one neat pile.
Right after that, the picture actually freezes for less than a second. But it’s there!
17. Flora’s laces keep changing.
This mistake is exactly how it sounds. When Flora is dressed out of her fairy clothes, she wears a bodice with laces.
They often change direction throughout the movie, but it’s hard to catch, so you’d have to pay very close attention.
18. The backgrounds change.
While the fairies are making the dress (which is one of the best parts of the movie, IMO), the backgrounds constantly change!
The door handles disappear and then appear again, and flowers and plates suddenly change positions.
For example, while Flora and Merryweather are fighting over the color of the dress, the bowl behind them keeps jumping between having food inside it and not having any food at all!
Next time you watch the movie, keep a close eye out for it!
19. The fantastic fabric.
When Merryweather goes to get the wands from their hiding place, the floor has fabric on it. However, when she comes back, there is no fabric at all!
But THEN, when she commands the broom to clean, the pieces of fabric not only reappear, but they’re not in the same place as the first shot.
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Did you notice any other mistakes in your viewings of *Sleeping Beauty*?
Or are you perfectly content not analyzing movies this way and just enjoying them, mistakes and all?
Let us know down below in the comments!
